System of economical production of superheated steam.



No. 755,893. PATENTED MAR. 29, 1904.

' A. LEGLERB.

\ SYSTEM OF ECONOMICAL PRODUCTION or SUPERHEATED STEAM. APPLIEOATION TILED JAIL 2, 1902. N0 MODEL.

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' UNITE STATES Patented March 29, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

ANDRE LECLERE, or PARIS, FRANCE, ASSIGNOR To socntrE ANONYME POUR A PRODUCTION ET LEMPLOI DE LA VAPEUR SURCHAUFFEE, or CHALON-SUR-SAONE, FRANCE. 7

SYSTEM OF ECONOMICAL PRODUCTION OF SUPERHEATED STEAM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 755,893, dated March 29, 1904.

Application filed January 2, 1902. Serial No. 88,239. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ANDRE LEOLERE, a citizen of the French Republic, residing at Paris, France, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Systems of Economical Production of Superheated Steam, of which the following is a specification.

If engines working with superheated steam have hitherto had only very limited applicaro tions, that results chiefly from the serious inconveniences attending the means usually. employed for effecting the superheating. Ordinary superheaters receive heat from the waste hot gases of the boiler-fires or from independ- I 5 ent fires, and consequently they require frequent cleaning,rendered necessary by the impurities of the heating gases. Moreover, owing to the variations in the demand for steam by the engine due to variations of load the superheaters are exposed in the oxidizing atmosphere which surrounds them either to.

excessive overheating, which damages them, injuriously affecting the working of the engine, and which is limited only by the temperature of the furnace, or has its useful effect rendered uncertain if measures be taken to moderate the heating. Again, with most superheaters irregularities of temperature in overheating once produced afiect the working for a long time, the engineer having no Way of moderating them except by furnace alterations, which are often important, and having no Way of watching so as to prevent their occurrence. On the other hand, independent fires for superheating or boiler-fires the waste gases of which are utilized for superheating give a poor return. They require for burning the fuel a considerable excess of air, their working has little elasticity, for it depends 4 only on the lowering of pressure produced by the chimney, the effect of which is middling. Finally, their useful effect varies with the skill of the workmen who have them in charge. From all that precedes it results that it is at present impossible to insure effective superheating of steam without risk of damaging the apparatus,without incurring considerable expense,owing to the imperfect utilization of the fuel, and without effective superintendence at considerable cost.

My invention has for its object a system of economical production of superheated steam applicable to steam-engines reducing the various inconveniences. I intend, first, to insure the preservation of the superheaters;

second, to obtain automatically a superheating at a high temperature without the risk of damage to the apparatus which employ the. superheated steam on account of the constant limit of the temperature of superheating, this limit being below that of the fires now employed for superheating; third, to obtain economy of fuel by its complete utilization, reduction of the gaseous masses in motion, and of the heat carried off by the combustion-gases. For this purpose I in the first place arrange the superheater in the passage of the reducinggases of a suitable fire before their combustion under the boiler which generates the steam. In this connection I may observe that in order to realize at the same time the vaporization of the waterand the superheating of the steam the sensible heat of a current of reducinggases from a suitable fire is sufficient, if the gases are pure enough, to superheat to a high temperature the weight of dry steam produced by the combustion of those gases under a boiler. I thus obtain automatically for a given weight of fuel the conversion into steam and the superheating to a high temperature of a corresponding weight of water, at the same time with preservation of the superheaters and maintenance of a limit of temperature below that of the fires now used, burning with complete combustion, which insures the preservation of the engine. I then establish a mechanical connection, effected or not by the motor, between the quantity of air sent into the suitable fire and the quantity sent under the boiler, which provides for complete and economical combustion without having regard to the superheating of the steam, which is effected by the sensible heat of the reducinggases of the suitable fire, gases the weight of which is proportional to that of the air which passes through the fire, these gases afterward burning under the boiler, this arrangement realizing automaticity between the quantity of steam generated and superheated and the quantity of fuel consumed. On the other hand, in order to realize at once the economical production of superheated steam at a high temperature and the constancy of the temperature limit of the superheating necessary for preservation of the superheater and of the motor-engine I utilize the reducing-gases produced by a suitable fire and then burned under the boiler that generates the steam.

In order to assist in understanding the description, I refer to the annexed drawing, which shows diagrammatically, by way of example, an arrangement for carrying out my system of economical production of superheated steam.

at is the suitable fire which I employ. It is preferably a gas-producer.

b is the superheater, arranged like an ordinary superheater.

c is the engine,and d represents cylinders for measuring air, worked by the engine.

0 is the boiler, and f is the chimney.

The arrows g indicate the course of the air, it indicate that of the gas, it indicate that of the steam, Z indicate that of the superheated steam, m indicate that of the exhaust-steam, and n that of products of combustion.

The apparatus operates in the following manner: Air sent by one of the measuringcylinders d, which are worked by the motors 0, is transmitted, as indicated by the arrows g, to the gas-producer a, where in presence of the fuel there it is transformed into hot reducing-gases, which pass, as indicated by the arrows it, to the superheater I), where they serve to superheat the steam that comes from the boiler e, as indicated by the arrows Z6. This superheated steam proceeds, as indicated by the arrows Z, to the cylinders of the motor 0, whence the exhaust passes, as indicated by the arrow m, to the open air or to a condenser, while the gases that have effected the superheating pass, as indicated by the arrows It, to the boiler, where they burn mixed with air coming, as indicated by the arrows g, from the other measuring-cylinder.

It is to be understood that there may be any number of motor and blowing cylinders, the latter either connected or not connected to the motor-engine, but serving to measure the volume of air sent to both the gas-producer and boiler or to the producer only, as this is suflicient to insure the preservation of the motors and superheaters, the automatic production of superheated steam, and a certain economy of fuel. It is also to be understood that for the blowing-cylinders may be substituted in whole or in part any other apparatus capable of effectively delivering the volume of air necessary for the partial or complete combustion of the fuel.

In order to insure the production of superheated steam at high temperature and the constancy of the limit of the superheating temperature, I claim the utilization of the sensible heat of the reducing-gases produced in a suitable fire and afterward burned under the boiler which generates the steam. Moreover, in order to realize economy of fuel and insure the automatic performance of the superheating Iclaim the mechanical connection insured either by the motor-engine or otherwise between the quantity of air sent to the suitable fire and under the boiler, so as to utilize completely the fuel, while insuring the automatic production of steam and its superheating.

Having thus described the nature of this invention and the best means I know of carrying the same into practical effect, I claim In combination with a boiler, a superheater to receive the steam therefrom, a gas-producer connected with the superheater to supply hot reducing-gases thereto to heat the steam, motor means, a connection between the same and the superheater to be supplied with steam therefrom, air-measuring means including a cylinder with its piston operated by the motor means and connections between the same and the gas-producer and boiler respectively, substantially as described.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two witnesses.

ANDRE LECLERE.

Witnesses:

EDWARD P. MACLEAN, JULES FAYOLLET. 

